https://leader.pubs.asha.org/article.aspx?articleid=1893888Use Examples to Develop Kids’ Language SkillsParents can help develop toddlers’ language skills by showing them varied examples of different actions, according to a study published in the British Journal of Developmental Psychology. Previous research has shown that verbs pose particular difficulties to toddlers, as verbs refer to actions—which are often different each time a child ...2014-08-01T00:00:00Research in Brief

Parents can help develop toddlers’ language skills by showing them varied examples of different actions, according to a study published in the British Journal of Developmental Psychology. Previous research has shown that verbs pose particular difficulties to toddlers, as verbs refer to actions—which are often different each time a child sees them—rather than to objects.

University of Liverpool and University of Sussex psychologists had a group of 24-month-old toddlers watch one of two short videos. They then examined whether watching a cartoon star repeat the same action—as compared with performing three different actions—affected the children’s understanding of verbs.

Lead author and developmental psychologist Katherine Twomey says, “This is the first study to indicate that showing toddlers similar but, importantly, not identical actions actually helped them understand what a verb refers to, instead of confusing them as you might expect.”

Collaborator Jessica Horst, from the University of Sussex, adds, “It is a crucial first step in understanding how what children see affects how they learn verbs and action categories, and provides the groundwork for future studies to examine in more detail exactly what kinds of variability affect how children learn words.”